Science Project
Generally, objects that fall from a higher distance have a greater impact force and a bigger splatter size then objects that fall from only a few feet. This is because of gravity and momentum. Have you ever dropped an egg from only a few cm from the ground and then dropped the egg from a few feet? Well, if you have, you probably noticed that the egg that was dropped from only a few cm away from the ground didn't break much if at all, and the egg that was dropped from a few feet away probably shattered and made a big mess. This is because the egg that was dropped from only a few cm didn't have time to speed up and gain enough momentum to break whereas the egg that was dropped from a few feet had enough time to speed up and enough momentum to make it so when it hit the ground it would shatter. However, objects with enough mass probably won’t break and/or shatter; they will probably just make a big crater. But a bowling ball, as heavy as it may be, dropped from only a few feet will most likely not make a very big crater. And of course, a ball that is dropped from a few feet will have a much bigger splatter size then the ball that was dropped from only a few cm. The same can be said about the depth the ball will make. The higher an object is dropped from, its depth will be deeper, and the lower the object is dropped from, its depth will be shallower. There are many variables as well as many steps that need to be done and need to be considered in order for this experiment to be successful. You have to take into consideration the height of which the object is being dropped from, the size of the object, the mass and density of the object, the object you are using, and much more. You need to consider the height from which the object is being dropped from because obviously an object that is being dropped from only a few feet will have a much smaller splatter size and impact force then the object that is dropped from a much higher altitude. Also, you must make sure the object is dropped with the same amount of force every time, otherwise it could mess up the entire experiment if you have the object being dropped with different force to start with every time. You must also consider the size, mass or density of the object being dropped. You need to know that an object with more mass/density will make a bigger splatter size and have a greater impact force than an object with only a little mass/density. For example; if you drop a bowling ball from two feet and then drop a golf ball from two feet, you will see that the bowling ball made a much larger splatter size. Likewise, the object you are using also is an important variable. Always use the same object throughout the experiment. If you use a golf ball for your first trial/test then a bowling ball for your second trial, and then a golf ball for your third, your data will not be reliable and your experiment will notice correct data. You need to keep the object you are using a constant variable. Also, remember to use an object that will work best for the experiment. For my experiment, I have chosen to use a golf ball. It is not too big, not too small, and has a good mass for what I am doing. Some of the variables you may not be able to control are, how hard the plaster (or what ever you are dropping your object into to get the splatter size) is when you drop the object into it. Another one is the weather and wind. If you are doing your experiment inside you don't really need to worry about this. But, if you are doing your experiment outside, the wind/weather could blow your object off course and make it miss its target, or make it hit with a greater impact, and/or affect the splatter size (Blowing some of the wet plaster (or whatever you are using) out of place). The materials you will need for this experiment are: Dry Concrete Mix Powder to measure the splatter size of the golf ball, a golf ball to drop from different heights to get the different splatter sizes, a meter stick so you can measure the heights from which you are dropping the golf ball, and some pipes to make a machine (or something like that.) to drop the golf ball. I will be dropping the ball at 10 cm high, 80 cm high, and 150 cm high. I will then measure how big its crater is, how deep it is, and how far out the plaster splattered. The steps for completing this experiment are listed below: 1.) Gather materials. 1.5.) Get a good working area. 2.) Setup experiment. (Get Concrete ready as well as machine thingy made.) 2.5.) Get everything you will need to record your data. 3.) Begin dropping the golf ball from different heights. 4.) Record the data of the different splatter sizes. 5.) Clean up lab. 6.) Present data to class. These are the measurements I will be using when I do this experiment: First drop: 10 cm Second drop: 80 cm Third drop: 150 cm Density = 0.653225 oz/inch cubed Volume = 2.48 cubic inches (40.68 cm3) Mass = 45.9 g "As per the United States Golf Association (USGA), the weight of the ball should not exceed 1.620 ounces (45.93 g) and must have a diameter of at least 1.680 inches (4.27 cm)." I dropped each ball three times from each height and recorded the mean for each thing that I measured as the final result. Results are as listed below: 1st drop at 10 cm: 8.53 cm in splatter size, 5.33 cm in diameter, and 3.5 cm in depth. 2nd drop at 80 cm: 64.8 cm in splatter size, 6.16 cm in diameter, and 8 cm in depth. 3rd drop at 150 cm: 102.43 cm in splatter size, 8.33 cm in diameter, and 9.5 cm in depth. The ball that was dropped from the highest height made the largest crater, deepest depth, and had that biggest splatter size out of all the other balls. These were the sources I used to help me with the experiment: Mead, Allison A., Ph.D, Arthur T. DeGaetano, Ph.D, and Jay M. Pasachoff, Ph.D. Holt Earth Science. Orlando, FL: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2007. Print. "Impact Crater." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 03 Jan. 2013. Web. 04 Mar. 2013. "Momentum." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Feb. 2013. Web. 04 Mar. 2013. So, in conclusion, the higher the ball was dropped from, the larger splatter size it had. The same happened to the depth. The higher the ball was dropped from, the more time it had to gain momentum, which in turn made the ball create a larger splatter size upon its impact with the plaster. Same goes with the depth. The deeper it went into the plaster. However, the diameter of the crater didn’t really change much. It seemed to stay the same regardless of how high the ball was dropped from. There were some drops that had a very different splatter size then the other drops, but for the most part, it stayed the same. I don’t think I did this experiment the same way every time, so I don’t think it is as accurate as it could have been. I think that I was accurate when doing this experiment and kept everything the same to keep it fair. My hypothesis proved to be correct. The higher an object is dropped from, the larger splatter size it will create and the deeper depth it will have. This is because of gravity and momentum. One variable that I could not control was my dog Daisy. I could not make her sit still so she may have ran past the ball while it was in the air; falling down to the plaster and she may have made a slight breeze that could have affected the ball’s path and affected its current rate in which it gained momentum. Category:Projects Category:Science Category:Numbers